Change Of Direction

Back in the UK, Drew thought long and hard about a way out of photojournalism into something that allowed him to be more creative and expressive, eventually coming up with an idea that was both quirky and original:

'I already knew that I loved photographing people, and then I hit upon the idea of photographing some of the more bizarre Guinness world record holders. It was an entirely self-generated and self-funded idea that enabled me to meet all these really amazing people all around the country. It also taught me how to light. I'm completely self-taught at lighting,'he says.

Though it resulted in a successful exhibition, the Guinness project didn't quite usher in the lucrative career as a commercial snapper Drew hoped it might. It did, however, open the door to another project, this time one based upon historical re-enactments for the Daily Mail Weekend Magazine.

From these initial projects Drew's creative work has grown in both ambition and stature, culminating in a series of location-based epic fashion shoots whose conception owe as much to mythology as they do to the complicated lighting set-ups used. More recently, Drew has embarked on a project to recreate a series of well-known paintings and photographs of historical figures using their direct living descendants.

Along with the mischievous, often irreverent, sense of humour that runs throughout much of his work, Drew has also drawn acclaim for the